The Puppet Masters: Invasion Zero
by Virusware
Summary: Using experimental technology, the Titans are attempting one last effort: send an army back in time to invade Earth with little or no retaliation. One Master bonds with his host, a smalltown punk, and the two lead the invasion. Rated for language.
1. The Circle Opens

The Circle Opens

I saw it. The star fell from the heavens above. It fell onto Old Man Megrugre's farm land. There wasn't much of an explosion, if one at all. My friends and I jumped from the back of the old Dodge truck we were sitting upon, throwing our beers out into the woods. Harry and Mike stayed in the back, while Troy and I got into the cab.

The drive wasn't that long. The old dirt roads rolled under the worn and greying tires of Troy McDougall's truck. The dark desolate road unfolded in front of us, the dark forest running along side us. When we came to a small trail in the forest, Troy let off the accelerator and pushed on the brakes a little, allowing him to turn into the woods easily.

The path to Megrugre's farm was narrow and overgrown, but that's the way we wanted it. Donald Megrugre would never notice it, leading into his farmland. Troy cut the lights out in front of his truck, no one would notice us out here.

We drove up to where it had landed, a smoldering crater. I was surprised, no doubt as were the other guys, that old Donnie Megrugre himself hadn't come out here to take a gander at what had landed.

It was a big black ball. So big, in fact, that it reached up to at least ten to fifteen feet. We examined it closely. It had a LOT of creases.

"Hey guys, I'm going to check out the other side." I said.

"Be careful, man. I don't know what the hell this thing is, but it sure as shit ain't no weather satellite." I nodded. I snatched the cigarette out of Harry's mouth and took a long drag on it.

"In case it's my last one." I explained sarcastically. Harry grinned, snatching back the cigarette. I took a deep breathe of the cold March air, savoring it in a way only a condemned criminal headed for Old Sparky can. Then I began my journey around the meteor or what ever it was.

Little did I know how much of a journey it was going to be. The giant ball must have been at least twenty feet around, if not larger. I had to be only a few feet from the opposite end of where my friends were waiting for me when I saw Mrs. Megrugre, lying on the ground, pale faced.

I ran toward her, hoping the pale face wasn't a permanent thing. I bent down to check her pulse, I was a Emergency Metro junkie before all this happened, and then was when I felt the back of my shirt go up, and a hard clanking on my back, like somebody had hit me with a steel bat. I fainted.

I woke up in a short daze. I felt great when the daze cleared. Everything seemed so clear, so absolute. It was almost an ecstasy. I looked around, Mrs. Megrugre was standing in front of me, a stern look on her face. I turned around to find Mr. Megrugre standing, also with a stern look on his face.

"Thank you for that. I was beginning to think that I'd have to wait till morning to have a body of my own. Are there any others ready?" I heard myself say.

"Yes, we can take all of the others here." Mr. Megrugre answered.

"Good. This time it's going to work. Let me lead, they won't expect it if they get it from me first." I said without thinking about it. For a moment my mind was blank, a black screen.

I turned from Mr. Megrugre and began walking around the ship. I heard Troy shout to me, and I replied, telling him that I had found something interesting and that he should come check it out, but that the other guys should stay back and guard the truck. They must've heard me, because after some rather loud discussion I heard footsteps coming our way. It was Harry. I signaled to Mr. Megrugre, who had been following me with some warmed transit cells, backed off.

I greeted Harry with a soft smile and asked where Troy was. Harry said that Troy had been busy taking a leak. Judging from the way he looked, I could tell he wasn't lying. I motioned with my hand for Harry to follow me, and he did. I slowed, allowing for him to get ahead of me. When I was sure that he was at least five feet from me, I jumped on him, pinning him and lifting the back of his shirt up. Don appeared from around the ship and got the master out of it's cell. Harry's shouts were muffled by the ground, in which his face was firmly planted.

I took the master from Don and held it to Harry's neck, letting it to do the rest. When the struggles Harry was putting up stopped I got off him, helping him. He brushed himself off and looked around.

"Alright, lets get the others. I want this quick and clean. By tomorrow we should have this entire area." he said. And that's the way it was, quick and clean. Troy put up a small quibble, but once his master was secured, everything fell into place. The town was basically easy. Don was a member of Town Council and was able to recruit all of the other members. Troy, Harry, Mike and I were able to recruit the local bar, Trixie's, and from there on, for us anyway, it was butter.

There was never any stereocast concerning the impact of the mysterious object. It was just... forgotten. Before three days had passed, we had secured almost the entire town. There was always the person or family who was out of town visiting family or on business. We would deal with that problem at the borders of town with road blocks.

Temper Hills was the first of many cities to be had by us, and soon, I would go to visit Kansas City. There I would send for crates full of masters in transit cells and would begin recruiting...


	2. Communication Invasion

Most days were busy. There was always something which needed to be done, and my Master was, if there were ranks with the Masters, a leader. After Tempest Hills was completely secure, we spent only one day scouting the town and planning. That was rest.

A day later we flew to Kansas City only to find out that it was being quarantined. After a direct conference with our contact outside the quarantine, we learned that the new drop point was New York. The Big Apple had a seed waiting for us.

When we arrived, we picked up a small package from a mailbox. Then we traveled through the empty streets to a warehouse. The package contained a small key, and that key opened the padlock to the warehouse's truck bay.

Inside we found twenty or so crates, all filled with Masters in their transit cells. New York wasn't secure, but we apparently had a small group of high officials. With their help, fifteen of the crates went onto a ship headed for London, and then to Athens. Soon, we would have international contacts.

I think if I hadn't been occupied by my Master, I would've been quite startled to find that the streets of New York City were like that of a ghost town. The news said something about "building international tensions", but that wasn't my concern. My concern was making sure that things were done right this time.

-

We escorted one crate, marked by an "X", all the way to Los Angeles. We got some sleep on the flight, but it was hardly enough to compensate for my Master-induced insomnia. I was constantly active, and I had hardy ate anything. That made no matter, though. My Master ensured my nourishment.

Around the time we landed in LA, my Master began communicating with me. At first I was surprised and confused (the most change I'd had since I was taken). I didn't even know it was talking to me. But it wasn't talking. The Master had stolen my inner monologue, and I began to feel schizophrenic.

Was I talking to myself?

No.

My Master asked me what my questions were. For a moment, I was too astonished to answer. Then, almost impulsively, I asked what it was. The response confused me, but then it made sense. As it talked to me, I gained access to a plethora of his memories.

The answer he gave me was complex, yet simple. He said _I am a Visitor, I come here only to Live._

They, as I once thought to call them, really is a Him. Singular. Each Master is simply the extension of one viable being, one consciousness. Groupthink. I know that he is a male, and that he is the last of his species. Each Master as an individual is a splinter of the original sentient.

He told me of the original Visit. The massive retaliation from the human species, and the eventual loss of the Masters. He knew only because one Master, a special master, survived the war and traveled with the humans to the Titan outpost. There, in the midst of the human's offensive strike, the information was sent over an EDC, an Extended Direct Conference. Radio waves are good for something, apparently.

Using experimental technology, this wave was sent back through time to instigate an invasion without retaliation. So far, we are successful.


End file.
